Awesome Conceptual Tool: The Periodic Table of Storytelling

by Chris Gerwel on May 20, 2011

So thanks to The Professor (my fiancée), here’s an absolutely amazing infographic that may just become my favorite outlining / conceptual tool. It’s the Periodic Table of Storytelling, which was posted on DeviantArt by ComputerSherpa, a second-semester art student. Check out the table below:

Periodic Table of Storytelling by ComputerSherpa, via DeviantArt

What makes this infographic so amazing is its ability to map out just about any story structure using its “atoms.” ComputerSherpa included some great example molecules that lay out some really well-known stories, and I might just start using molecules like that when I outline my own stuff. What I really need is a smartphone app that will let me search and model those kind of storytelling molecules on my phone. That would be really helpful.

In the meantime, lacking such a smartphone app, you can order a poster print of this here. The example molecules have been removed from the bottom on the poster (which I think is a shame), but I think it’s really cool anyway.

Yeah, I spotted this awhile back. I’m actually a contributor (a new one) over at TV Tropes, which is where this came from. I first got directed there while looking for superhero themes/tropes, and I can tell you the site is a great tool for generating ideas and helping to smash through writer’s block. It’s also a site that will suck you in, steal hours of your life… Be warned.